Washington -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Rose Mary Sabo Brown spent just 30 days with her new husband , Army Spec . Leslie Sabo Jr. , before he shipped out to fight in Vietnam . But from that month together in 1969 grew a lifetime of love .

`` We got married in September , he got to come home that weekend , and we spent the night together , and he had to go back to Georgia the next day , '' Rose told CNN . After that , Sabo was off to training before returning home for 30 days that fall .

`` We only had that one month together as a married couple , '' she told CNN . `` He left for Vietnam , and I never saw him again . ''

Obama awards Medal of Honor posthumously to Vietnam hero

About seven months after the wedding , two soldiers knocked on the door of her home in western Pennsylvania to say he was missing in action .

`` They came back to me five days later and told me that he was killed in action by enemy fire , and that was it . That 's all I knew for 32 years . ''

There was a lot more to know , and now the nation is honoring what he did those decades ago . On Wednesday President Barack Obama will award Spec . Leslie Sabo Jr. the Medal of Honor .

The Medal of Honor : What is it ?

Brown said her husband was fun-loving . `` The Leslie I knew was always goofing around , having fun . We had a ball together , my family adored him . Oh my gosh , my mother keeps saying , ` You could n't have found anybody better than him to marry my daughter . ' ''

The people he fought with in the 101st Airborne Division told Rose that he knew when to put aside the goofing and focus on fighting .

`` When he was over there , he wore a red bandanna , '' she said . `` And -LRB- his fellow soldiers -RRB- said when he put that red bandanna around his forehead , he meant business . He was a soldier . And they have a picture of him with that red bandanna on , and the title of it is ` The Soldier . ' ''

The Soldier 's last stand , near the Se San River in Cambodia on May 10 , 1970 , is documented by the Department of Defense :

`` Even though his platoon was ambushed from all sides by a large enemy force , Sabo charged the enemy position , killing several enemy Soldiers . He then assaulted an enemy flanking force , successfully drawing their fire away from friendly Soldiers and ultimately forcing the enemy to retreat . While securing a re-supply of ammunition , an enemy grenade landed nearby . Specialist Sabo picked it up , threw it , and shielded a wounded comrade with his own body -- absorbing the brunt of the blast and saving his comrade 's life .

`` Although wounded by the grenade blast , Sabo continued to charge the enemy 's bunker . After receiving several serious wounds from automatic weapons fire , he crawled toward the enemy emplacement and , when in position , threw a grenade into the bunker . The resulting explosion silenced the enemy fire , but also ended Specialist Sabo 's life . ''

Comments : Who deserves a Medal of Honor ?

When Obama presents Rose Mary Sabo Brown with the medal on the pale blue ribbon , it will complete a circle that began 42 years ago right after her husband 's death . His unit had recommended him for the Medal of Honor , but somehow it did n't happen . A researcher discovered files about Sabo , and now the earlier oversight has been corrected .

Transcript : Obama 's remarks at Medal of Honor ceremony

For now , Brown is focused on her late husband and the medal he earned more than four decades ago .

`` I 've never stopped thinking about him , '' she said . `` My heart is filled with pride that you ca n't even imagine . It will be an honor to share this with anyone who wants to see it . ''

Are you a veteran ? Who was a hero in your unit , or what kind of heroic action have you witnessed ? Please share in the comments below .

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Spec . Leslie Sabo Jr. was married for one month before shipping out to Vietnam

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His bride , Rose , says he `` was always goofing around . ... We had a ball together ''

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Sabo died in a firefight in which he shielded his mates from a grenade , took out a bunker

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He will receive the Medal of Honor posthumously from the president on Wednesday